We're The Kids Your Parents Warned You About
by ITgwendolendragon
Summary: Sequel to Life's A Funny Thing. The continuation of the life of Eric and Jackie and the story of them raising a family together and watching their children grow and make their own life decisions. I've. Never. Been. Good. At. Summary's.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N – As I'm posting this chapter, I don't know if half of you have even finished reading the long ass chapter that was the conclusion of Life's A Funny Thing. But, anyway, here's the sequel, I hope you like it. It's more OC focused than most, so if you don't stick around that's fine. There will still be Eric/Jackie moments, don't worry, this is a story about their family after all.**

 **Anyway, this is section 1 of this story. The first part will be about Chris, Callie and a couple of their friends. The second part will shift over to Eric and Jackie's children and their lives. I hope you guys enjoy this as much as you enjoyed the first story, I really can't wait to write this. Have a good day and on with the chapter.**

 **Disclaimer – I don't own That 70's Show or any of their characters. The only thing I own are the OC's.**

May 14, 2004

Chris laid on his back on his bed staring up at the ceiling. He'd been through a lot in the past several months, a lot he hasn't told anybody about yet. Not his mother, or his father, or surrogate father he should say, not his friends or even the person he trusts most on this planet, his girlfriend Callie.

They've been dating for nearly three years by now. A lot's happened it three years. Eric and Jackie still got married on April 23, 2002 and a month later they welcomed their first child. A son they named Ben. He just turned two about a week ago.

He looked like both Eric and Jackie in the face. He was pale like Eric, but he had dark hair like Jackie. It was actually darker than Jackie's. He had dark eyes and a cute button nose. He was a happy kid, he just didn't smile often, but you could tell he was happy. He was obsessed with numbers and could count to ten already. He could identify numbers over twenty, he just couldn't count that high yet.

He has a much deeper vocabulary than most toddlers as well, he knew what certain larger words meant. Many people though he might be a genius, but it was too early to really test him for that, he could just be a little quicker when it comes to development than other kids his age.

He enjoyed coloring, like most kids, but he liked coloring inside the lines, getting upset if he accidentally colors outside of them. He also liked playing with the couch cushions and pretending the floor was lava, like every child has done, he liked playing that game with Chris. He liked watching Callie play the ukulele which she got for Christmas last year and she had become very good at playing.

Ben could read a little bit already, but just smaller words, like cook and job, and things like that, but kids usually didn't start learning to read until they were three or four, and Ben just turned two days ago.

Eric and Jackie were worried about him though because he didn't like playing with other kids, not even his own siblings, who weren't that far behind him in age. He liked playing alone and he usually picked up a puzzle game or story book rather than a dinosaur toy or train set.

He didn't like being held and often fussed if he was. He only let Chris hold him. He had a weird sort of connection with Chris, which Eric and Jackie thought was cute, but also it worried them, because they're own son didn't want them to hold his hand or anything.

A lot of doctors have told them it was a faze that Ben was going through, as most kids go through a faze of thinking they don't need help doing things or think they're older than they actually are, but that usually came later in life, like age five or six.

But for now, Ben was happy and they let his issues be for the time being. They'd wait to deal with that until he was at least four, right before he started school or if his problems seemed to get worse.

Their second born was born a little more than a year later, only three days after Ben's first birthday. His name was Dennis. You could tell him and Ben were related, Dennis just had a slimmer face than Ben. He looked a little more like Eric than Jackie though, but he had the dark hair like she did.

Also, if Dennis was upset or angry about something and he'd scowl you could so obviously tell Red Forman was his grandfather. Jackie thought it was cute when Dennis was angry, he'd cross his chubby arms, send you a very serious glare and jut his bottom lip out in a pout. He just took his first steps not long ago, and he was very happy about that.

He was a very serious toddler, he took everything very seriously. He thought he was an adult. He liked to help his parents cook, clean, he liked to wash his own hair because he wanted to be a hairdresser like his mom and he helped Eric take photos because he also wanted to be a photographer like his dad.

He thought he could drive, as Jackie would let him sit in her lap as she drove very slowly down the street where barely any cars ever drove.

He only thought he was an adult until the end of the day though when he wanted to be held and read bedtime stories or watch silly cartoons on the TV and sing along to the goofy songs.

The family had moved to a small little neighborhood in Brooklyn after Ben was born. It was called Greenpoint. It was a nice little neighborhood, kind of quiet. Most people who lived here were below the poverty line but they were all good people. It was a prominently Polish neighborhood, whether it be Polish immigrants or Polish-Americans.

Eric fit in as his ancestry has got some Polish background on his mother's side. He was Irish on his father's side. Nearly eighty percent of the neighborhood was taken up by people of Polish decent, about fourteen percent of it was Hispanic or Latino people, but that was in one section of the neighborhood North of where Eric and Jackie and their family lived. The other ethnic groups taken up the remaining percent were African-American, Chinese, Arabic and Indian.

They lived in a two story home that had bedrooms and a bonus room. It was meant to be a guest room, but because of all the kids Eric and Jackie turned it into a bedroom. Chris had his bedroom that he had to share with Ben, which he didn't mind, he enjoyed playing with Ben, Callie had her own separate bedroom because Jackie claimed she was a girl and needed her own space, and then Dennis had his own bedroom, and then of course Eric and Jackie had their own bedroom, which they now shared with the newcomer to the family.

The new baby's name was Alice. She looked like Eric. She had his eyes and nose. She was beautiful. Eric was actually really excited when he found out they were having a girl. He was stuck at a meeting when Jackie found out. He really wanted to be there, but Jackie thought it was fine how everything turned out.

She had called him during a coffee break and when she told him it was going to be a girl he ran around the office telling everybody about it. Jackie remembers laughing at that and thinking it was the cutest thing in the entire world.

And now, here they both sat in the living room holding their new addition and letting the kids see her. All the kids were three days apart. Ben was born on May 6, 2002, Dennis on May 9, 2003, and Alice on May 12, 2004.

"Baby!" Dennis cried, pointing to his little sister, a smile on his face.

"This is your little sister, Dennis," Eric smiled as Jackie held the baby. He grabbed Dennis under his arms and set him in his lap, "Her name is Alice."

Dennis smiled a gummy smile and grabbed Alice's tiny hand. Jackie giggled as she watched Dennis interact with his little sister.

"Ben, do you want to say hi?" Jackie asked, looking down at her oldest.

Ben didn't look up, he just looked at the baby in his mother's arms and stayed silent. Jackie sighed and looked over at Eric, "Where's Chris and Callie?"

Eric shrugged and looked towards the stairs before he stood and set Dennis on the couch next to his mother before he started towards the stairs. He didn't want to yell for them from where he sat on the couch, it'd make Ben upset as Ben didn't like loud noises, but what toddler did?

So Eric called them from the bottom of the stairs as he stood a little bit away from Ben, "Chris! Callie! Could you come down here please?"

Eric waited a moment and then heard the familiar sound of teenager's footsteps running down the stairs. Eric stepped back and waited for the two to pass him down the steps.

Chris had just turned eighteen in February and graduated next Saturday. Callie just turned sixteen in March and so desperately wanted to get her driver's license.

"You're home!" Callie beamed as she came into the living room, seeing Alice in Jackie's arms, "I didn't hear you come in."

Callie went to sit next to Jackie, lifting Dennis up and setting him in her lap, putting her arms around his middle and kissing him on the cheek, making Dennis giggle.

Eric grabbed Chris's sleeve and tugged on it, pulling him over to him, "Chris, Ben's being stubborn again. I've been trying to get him to react to his sister for about fifteen minutes now and he won't say anything. You think you could help out?"

Chris looked over at Ben on the couch, watching Alice intently. Chris smiled and nodded, "Yeah, sure."

Eric smiled, "Thanks Chris."

The two then went back over to the couch and Eric sat down next to Callie and Dennis as Chris went over to Ben.

"Hey Benji," Chris smiled, garnering the young boy's attention, "Can I sit with you?"

Ben looked at Chris for a minute before suddenly holding his arms up and clenching and unclenching his small fists, a sign that he wanted Chris to hold him.

Chris smiled and lifted the boy up and then sat down in his place, setting Ben in his lap. After Ben was settled, Chris looked over at Alice, who had met in the hospital the day she was born.

"Ben," Chris started, "Do you know who this is?"

Ben looked up at Chris and shook his head, his dark hair falling in his eyes.

"This is your little sister, Alice," Chris continued, "You already have a little brother and do you remember what I said a big brother's responsibly was?"

Ben nodded, "Keep them safe," He said, looking down at Alice.

Chris nodded, "That's right. But what else do you do?"

Ben thought for a moment, pursing his lips, "Love them."

Chris nodded, "Correct. Do you love Dennis?"

Ben nodded.

"What about your mommy and daddy?" Ben nodded again as Jackie and Eric smiled, "Me and Callie?" Ben nodded, "Alright, then that means you have to love Alice too, right?"

Ben looked down at his baby sister and examined her for a moment. She was so tiny. He could remember when Dennis was this small, but the memory was foggy. Ben suddenly smiled a little bit and grabbed Alice's other hand in his slightly bigger one.

"Sissy," Ben called her a fond nickname, watching her tiny fist close around his hand.

Everybody smiled at the small gesture and they all sat in the living room for a while, ogling over the arrival of the baby. They all sat in a comfortable silence for about ten minutes or so, every once in a while someone would say something about Alice and how she resembled her parents in some way.

The silence was broken though by a loud knocking on the door that startled everyone. They all looked up and looked towards the door, but Chris suddenly stood, seeming to know it was.

"I'll get it," He said, setting Ben back down on the couch next to his mother.

Chris walked over to the door and swung it open revealing two familiar faces. Chris smiled at the two, "Hey Casper, Carlo."

"Hey baby, you got what I need?" Carlo asked, a smug look on his face as a cigarette hung from his bottom lip.

"Carlo, shut up," Chris replied as Carlo looked over his shoulder, as if he were looking for someone.

"There's three C's here, where's the fourth? I don't feel complete inside without the fourth," Carlo said.

"She's with my family, would you get rid of that thing? I don't feel like explaining the effects of cigarettes to toddlers today," Chris snapped, snatching the cigarette from Carlo's lips and smashing it underneath his foot.

"Sorry," Carlo said, mocking hurt, "Now, are you going to invite us in or do we need a warrant?"

Before Chris could respond Carlo pushed him out of the way and made himself present in the living room.

Callie looked up from where she sat on the couch, Dennis still in her lap, her face going from happy to displeased in a split second, "Oh. Hey Carlo."

"Hey Callie, how you doin'?" He mocked a Jersey accent and looked down at the kids on the couch with Eric and Jackie, "I thought there were only two of those."

Callie assumed he was referring to the kids and she shook her head, placing Dennis back in Eric's lap and standing. Both Eric and Jackie seemed confused and didn't really seem to know what was going on who this kid even was. And how did he know about their kids?

"Alice was just brought home, she was born a couple days ago," Callie said, going to stand next to Carlo, "Um, Eric, Jackie, this is our friend Carlo. He just moved here a few months ago from California."

"But not like puttin' on the rits' California, more like puttin' on the hand-me-downs California," Carlo replied, holding his hands up in defense of himself.

"Oh, Carlo, right," Eric said, nodding, "We've heard so much about you."

Carlo frowned and slumped his shoulders, "Well shit, that's not good."

Callie smacked Carlo on the arm and glared at him as Chris came back into the room, Casper in tow. Eric looked up at him and furrowed his brow, "Chris, you didn't tell us you were having company."

Chris nodded and scratched the back of his head nervously, "Yeah, I know, sorry. I was going to tell you but I didn't think they'd be here so early."

"Well, okay," Eric said as Dennis jumped down from his lap and ran around the coffee table to see Casper and Carlo, "Just give us a little fair warning next time, okay?"

Chris nodded, "Okay."

"Car!" Dennis cried, throwing his hands up in the air, beaming up at Carlo.

"Den!" Carlo cried back, mimicking Dennis's movements, "How's it goin', pal?"

Dennis didn't respond, he'd already moved on and was going over to Casper. Carlo looked down at Chris and put his hands on his hips, "What'd you want us to come over for? You said it was 'urgent,'" Carlo used air quotes, "And that we needed to 'hurry up.'"

Eric and Jackie couldn't hear what the teenagers were saying, as they were now whispering, except for Casper, who was now knelt down in front of Dennis talking to him.

"I'll tell you upstairs," Chris said, tilting his head towards the staircase.

Callie also seemed curious and Carlo noticed this. He gasped in mock surprise, "Chris, not even your girlfriend knows about this? I'm shocked."

Chris rolled his eyes and looked down at Casper, "Casper, come on."

Casper looked up at Chris and then back down at Dennis. He said something to him and then stood as Dennis went back over to his father, crawling up in his lap and sitting back down.

"Alright, well, we're going to my room now," Chris said to Eric and Jackie as Carlo, Casper and Callie were already headed for the stairs.

"Okay," Eric said, seeming a little suspicious, "Do your friends want to stay for dinner? We're making tacos."

"Count me in," Carlo called from the stairs, pointing at Eric.

"Thanks, Mr. Forman," Casper smiled and waved at Eric as he passed Carlo on the steps.

"We'll see you at dinner," Chris said before he turned and followed his friends up the stairs.

They all ran up the stairs quickly and went into Chris's bedroom. Callie stood in the middle of the room, her arms crossed over her chest, Casper sat down on the edge of Chris's bed and waited for Chris to close to door, and Carlo laid down on Chris's bed, grabbing a Rubix Cube in the process.

After Chris closed the door he came into the bedroom seeming rather nervous, his hands clenching together as he paced a tad. Callie seemed concerned, Casper watched him, a furrow in his brow and Carlo messed with the toy in his hand.

"Chris?" Callie said quietly, grabbing her boyfriend's arm to stop his nervous pacing, "What's all this about?"

"Yeah, why'd ye' call us all ova' here like this? What could be so important?" Casper asked, seemingly annoyed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'm sorry I'm acting so crazy, this is just really big and I don't know if you guys are going to do what I ask of you or not," Chris said nervously, still messing with his hands.

"You're not hiring us to kill somebody for you are you?" Carlo asked, not looking up from the Rubix Cube.

Chris shook his head, furrowing his brow and sending Carlo and incredulous look, "What? No."

Carlo nodded, "Okay, then whatever it is, I'm in."

"You haven't even heard what I'm going to say," Chris said, dropping his arms by his sides.

Carlo shrugged, "As long as we're assassinating people or committing mass genocide and becoming the next Hitler, then I'm cool with whatever it is you're about to say."

Chris nodded and looked down at his feet, "Alright," He sighed.

Callie put a hand on his back, "Chris, are you okay?"

Chris nodded and stood up straight, releasing a heavy sigh before he just blurted out what he wanted to propose, "Who wants to go on a road trip?"

Carlo suddenly threw the Rubix Cube down on Chris's mattress and sat up, "Hang on there, Esmerelda," He started sarcastically, "You called us over here, nearly had a damn panic attack, just to ask us if we wanted to go on a road trip?"

Chris shook his head, "No, it's not about the road trip in general."

"Then what is it about?" Casper suddenly asked, slumping his shoulders and peering up at Chris.

Chris suddenly darted across the room to his computer desk and sorted through the scattered papers on top of it. He came back a moment later with several different forms in his hand, "I've been doing a lot of research and thinking."

"Well that's not good," Carlo rolled his eyes as he sat back down on the bed next to Casper.

"A week after I turned eighteen I made a huge decision," Chris began, "I've been thinking about this a lot since I was probably about thirteen or fourteen, and it's a big deal in my life and—"

"Get on with it, Chris," Carlo snapped suddenly.

Chris flinched and swallowed thickly before he shocked the room with his next sentence, "I found my birth father."

Everybody got quiet, even Carlo. They all looked up at Chris, shocked.

"Chris…" Callie started, not really sure what to say, "Are… Is…"

Chris smiled down at Callie and then looked around at all his friends, "This is great, guys. I found him."

Callie smiled sweetly, but was a little concerned. It was great that Chris found his dad, but Callie was also worried that if when he met his dad he'd be disappointed. What if his father was a drug addict or something? What if he was a criminal?

"His name is George Lin. He lives in California and he has a family of his own over there," Chris smiled.

"He has a family?" Callie asked, putting a gentle hand on his back, "Doesn't that bother you?"

Chris shook his head, "No. He and my mom had a one night stand, he doesn't know I exist. How could I be mad at him for starting a life of his own just because my mom didn't know how to find him and tell him who I was?"

Everybody was silent for a moment, agreeing that he had a good point.

"California?" Carlo suddenly said, raising a thick eyebrow, "I just came from California, why would I want to go back?"

Chris shook his head, "We're going to middle class California, not trailer park."

Carlo then smiled, "I'm hurt, but you've swayed my decision. I'm back in," Carlo said, standing again and going to stand next to Chris, throwing his arm over his friend's shoulders, "I hear there's a lot of hot single babes in the upper middle class. I bet you I could really show them a good time, eh?"

Callie suddenly smacked Carlo on the chest and he jumped back away from her and her boyfriend, "Carlo, you're such an ass," She said, smacking at him again, but missing.

"Ooh, that's hostility babe, I might have to punish you for that," Carlo smiled smugly at the girl.

"Okay, could we not do this right now," Chris suddenly asked, seeming uncomfortable with Carlo's suggestive language towards his girlfriend.

Callie rolled her eyes, "How did Eric and Jackie not throw you out when they realized who you were?"

"I gave him a good word," Chris interjected, looking at Carlo, "I told them about the time you saved that kid from falling in the fountain at the park."

Carlo seemed dismayed by this, "Well shit, now I've given them standards."

"Can you two just shut up?" Chris snapped suddenly. Everybody then got quiet before Chris finally asked, "Who's in?"

Carlo raised his hand, "As long as you're payin' for everything."

Chris nodded and smiled before looking over at Casper and then at Callie. Casper raised his hand next, figuring he had nothing to lose, "Fuck it, I've got nothin' betta' ta' do anyway."

Chris smiled and then looked over at his girlfriend of nearly three years. She looked around at everybody for a moment, trying to decide if she should really go or not.

She could go on this trip with her best friends. Chris was sweet and did everything to make her feel comfortable and Casper was funny and always knew how to cheer her up.

On the other hand though she had Carlo, a manic depressive asshole who was always making wisecracks and smoked cigarettes more than deemed necessary. He was always harassing her with sexual jokes, things that Chris always shut down.

But on the bright side, she'd get to experience this chapter of Chris's life with him.

Callie smiled slightly, "When are we leaving?"

Chris smiled down at his girlfriend and looked down at the forms in his hand, "Next Saturday, after I graduate. We'll leave that night, but we can't tell anybody outside of this room, okay?"

"Ooh, I feel like I'm in a cult. This is sick," Carlo smiled giddily.

Callie rolled her eyes and grabbed Chris's arm, looking up at him, "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Chris looked down at Callie and then over at his two friends before smiling and nodded, looking back down at Callie sweetly, "Yeah. I'm sure."


	2. Chapter 2

May 22, 2004

It was after eleven. Chris was waiting to hear Eric and Jackie's door shut, when he heard that it was a sign they wouldn't be up again until the next morning, but Chris didn't need that long, he just needed enough time to get out of here without them noticing.

A minute later, Chris heard the familiar sound of their door closing and he quickly jumped up out of his computer chair and went to his bed. He got down on the ground and reached underneath his bed and pulled out his backpack, which had a pair of clean pants, two clean shirts, underwear of course, toothbrush, toothpaste, his wallet, and other necessities.

He packed the night previous. This entire week he's been hyped to get out of here and head across to California. He's never been there before, he thought it might be quite interesting.

He sent a letter to the rehab center where his mother was staying to let her know what he was doing. It should get to her tomorrow sometime. She'd call Eric and tell him what was going on, but she couldn't tell him where Chris was, as she didn't know where Chris's dad lived and Chris didn't tell her.

Chris grabbed his jacket off his bed and put it on before grabbing his bag and slinging it over his shoulders before he went back over to his desk and pinned the note he had written onto his monitor with tape.

It read:

 _Dear Jackie and Eric, I'm sorry if I cause you to panic, don't worry, I am fine. I've gone on a road trip with Callie, Casper and Carlo, so if their parents call just tell them they're fine and explain the situation. No, I'm not running away, I should be back in two weeks time. I know I'm grounded, but I don't care, this trip is worth it. I'm not going into depth about what I'm doing, but my mother should call you in a couple of days to fill you in, I've sent her a detailed letter on my objective. Sorry if you're upset or worried, but I'll be just fine. Sincerely, Chris._

Chris then looked over at Ben, who had been sleeping for the past several hours. Chris wanted to go give him a kiss or hug goodbye, but Ben was a light sleeper and he didn't want to wake him. So Chris just watched him sleep for a minute and smiled. That little boy would be lost without Chris for a while. Chris was also sorry for Jackie and Eric having to deal with a cranky Ben for a couple of weeks, as Ben absolutely adored Chris.

Chris sighed quietly and snuck over to the window. If he used the door Ben would hear him, or worse, Eric and Jackie, so he had to use the window. He unlocked it and slid it open smoothly before he clambered out quietly, casting Ben one last glance. When he was sitting on the windowsill he looked down and saw that Callie had placed the ladder underneath his window.

Callie had told Jackie and Eric she was going to a sleepover with some friends tonight, so Callie got out easily. Chris never got invited places and usually just hung out with weird kids, so it was hard to make up an excuse for himself, but Callie told him she'd leave him a way to get out of his room easily and undetected, and thank god she came through.

Chris stepped down onto the ladder and closed his window firmly, making sure it was shut properly so Ben didn't open it. After that was done, he clambered down the ladder and landed into the front garden moments later.

After his shoes hit the dirt he brushed himself off but was alarmed when he felt a firm grasp smack onto his shoulder, squeezing tightly, "Now what did I tell you about sneaking out?"

Chris suddenly whirled around and was instantly relieved when he saw it was only Carlo and he glared at him, smacking him in the gut hard, "What the hell, Carlo. You scared the shit out of me!"

"Ow. Defensive much?" Carlo asked, rubbing his stomach painfully as he released Chris's arm.

Chris then noticed his other friends were here as well. Chris pushed Carlo away from him and stepped out of the garden, "You guys got everything?"

They all nodded.

"Good," He said, nodding, "We're all ready then?"

Everybody nodded again, except for Casper, who put up a hand, "Well, actually…"

Chris rolled his eyes and slumped his shoulders irritably, "Casper. I told you to be ready by the time we were going to leave. What'd you forget?"

Casper shook his head, "Nothin'. It's ratha' 'who.'"

Everybody peered at him curiously, "Who?" Chris questioned, "What do you mean you forgot somebody?"

"Well, ye' see. I went ta' this party earlier, ye' know, since I graduated and what not…" He said, Carlo cutting him off.

"Could you not talk about your freedom from hell on earth? There's two of us here who still have to go back there next year," Carlo snapped, referring to himself and Callie.

Casper ignored him, "Whateva'. So anyway, at this party was my cousin', and—"

"Wait? Which cousin?" Chris asked, holding his breath, praying it wasn't who he thought it was.

Casper winced and pushed his hands into his pockets as he quickly said, "Bailey."

"Oh, come on!" Chris cried, the others muttering irritable things under their breath as Carlo gave Casper an astounded look.

"Bitch, why you gotta kill my vibe?" Carlo snapped, "I was gettin' hyped for this trip and now it's all gone down the drain…" Carlo sighed, turning away from his friends and kicking at rocks on the ground.

"I'm sorry, but if I didn't bring 'er, she said she was goin' ta' tell yer ol' man before we got the chance ta' leave. She also said she was goin' ta' tell my ol' man, and, y'know, he—" He was cut off by Callie, putting a hand on his back and the other on his arm.

"We know, Casper," She said, not wanting to hear about his father's abusive ways.

Casper got quiet and waited for Chris to respond. Casper's whole family was really screwed up. His dad, or step-dad, was still an alcoholic douchebag, he was even worse now that Casper's mother and little sister weren't around, and his cousin, who lived about a block from him, was just as big of a dickhead. She thought she was the greatest there ever was and was almost exactly like Casper's dad, just the girl version.

"Fine, let's go," Chris snapped, obviously not pleased about this, nobody was.

0-0-0-0-0

"Thanks for lettin' me come, guys," Bailey said sarcastically as she sat in the back seat between Casper and Carlo, "I love road trips."

Callie looked over her shoulder and into the backseat. Carlo was munching on a Slim Jim they'd just gotten at the gas station, Bailey looked content and smug, as usual, and Casper just looked plain uncomfortable, everybody was. Except for Bailey of course.

Bailey looked at Casper and furrowed her brow, her smile still present though, "What's the matta', Cas-Cas? Not feelin' well?"

Casper glared at Bailey and tried scooting as far away from her as he possibly could, his eyes darting over to look out the window.

Callie sighed and turned back to look out the windshield as Chris drove. It was very tense in here, Callie really wanted to open the door and throw Bailey into the street, but that's wrong. She'd have to find a legal way to let her know she hated her with everything she had.

"Slim Jim?" Carlo offered to Bailey. She looked over at him and rolled her eyes before turning to look back at Casper. Carlo only shrugged and went back to eating his snack.

"So… Goin' ta' meet yer daddy, eh Chrissy?" Bailey asked smugly, her arms crossed over her chest loosely, "Ye' gotta be nervous, I mean, what could ye' possibly say ta' the man who left ye'?"

Chris didn't seem annoyed by this at all, he just replied very calmly with, "You can't really leave somebody if you don't even know they exist."

Bailey shrugged and nodded, "Fair enough. But still… What're ye' gonna say ta' 'im?"

Chris shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know. I'll figure it out when we get there."

Bailey seemed annoyed that Chris wasn't bothering by her antics. He was usually annoyed by her, but he just didn't show it, it pissed her off and that was perfect revenge for everything she's done to his friend.

Bailey then turned to Casper and said, "Ye' got out of one rut, Cas-Cas. But what're ye' gonna do when ye' get back? Yer dad's still gonna beat yer ass."

Casper tensed up at the very mention of his 'father,' but he only shrugged and stayed silent. It was suddenly very tense in here, nobody knowing what to say to break it up. Carlo seemed to be the only one who was even calm in this situation, but even he noticed the tense vibe that was being let off.

"So, ye' got a boyfriend?" Carlo suddenly asked Bailey, taking another bite of his Slim Jim.

Bailey suddenly turned to face him, as if offended by his question, "No. Why do ye' ask?"

Carlo shrugged and offered a charming smile. Though it'd be more charming if he didn't have a mouthful of food he was chewing on, "You've got attitude, I like that."

"Yer annoyin'," Bailey snapped, glaring at Carlo, as if disgusted he was even sitting next to her.

"Is that a compliment?" Carlo asked, his eyes staring directly into Bailey's.

Bailey glared daggers, "No."

Carlo smiled, "Well, I took it as one."

Bailey scoffed and rolled her eyes, "God, yer so annoyin'. And would ye' please scoot ova jus' a little?"

Carlo smirked smugly, "Why? Ye' don't like me touchin' ye'?"

Bailey shook her head and pushed Carlo away from her, as far as she could towards the window, "No, yer disgustin'."

"Would you two please shut up?" Callie suddenly barked from the front seat, annoyed at their constant bickering.

"Don't yell at me, yell at 'im! 'E started it!" Bailey snapped, glaring at the back of Callie's head.

Callie glared into the back seat at the girl, "Don't make me smack you, because I will."

"Come at me, bitch!" Bailey snapped.

Chris seemed tense now as he swallowed nervously, "Hey, um, could we not call my girlfriend a bitch, please?"

"Ye' want some of this too, Cuomo? I'll beat yer scrawny little ass!" Bailey snapped at Chris.

Chris shook his head, "No, I'm fine, thanks for the offer though."

Callie almost laughed at Chris's rare sarcasm, but she was too busy yelling at Bailey, "Don't threaten my boyfriend, I'll kick your ass!"

"Yeah, well—"

"Ladies, ladies…" Carlo interjected, putting his hands out to try and quell the angry tension in the car, "Calm down, we can surely work this out in a calm manner."

"Bite me, Muhammed!" Bailey snapped at Carlo.

Carlo sat back and looked at the girl in an incredulous way before mumbling, "You motherfucker, I'm Jewish…"

Everybody was yelling soon enough. Callie and Bailey were close to killing each other, Carlo was mumbling to himself annoyed things directed towards Bailey, Casper pressed himself as far to the door as he could, not wanting to take part any of this that was happening.

Chris gripped the steering wheel tightly, wincing as his ears started to hurt. There was too much noise, he was starting to panic. Chris pulled one hand off the steering wheel and rubbed his eyes irritably before putting his glasses back into place.

He let out a sharp breath before tugging on his ear nervously. All the sounds were beginning to overwhelm him, his thoughts were starting to get all jumbled up and that's what was causing him to panic.

"Guys…" Casper tried, getting annoyed with all this noise himself.

But they all continued to bicker. Callie and Bailey just continued screaming at each other as Carlo continued trying to get his two cents in.

"Um, guys…" Casper tried again, finally noticing Chris having a panic attack. They had to pull over who they'd veer off the road or worse, crash.

When the bickering didn't stop, Casper yelled, "Guys!"

Everybody stopped immediately. They all looked over at Casper, who was glaring at all of them irritably before he pointed to Chris, "Chris is having a meltdown."

Callie then very quickly turned her head to look at her boyfriend. He was having a hard time catching his breath.

"Chris, pull over," Callie said to him, all of her previous emotions turning into worry, "Chris."

He wasn't listening, or rather he had tuned her out on accident. Callie took off her seat belt and scooted closer to Chris before grabbing the steering wheel out of his hands and steering them onto the side of the road. She forcefully pushed his leg over, causing his foot to slip off the accelerator which caused them to start slowing down. Callie waited until they were slowed down to use the emergency brake and then they were stopped. She put the car in park and let go of the steering wheel before flipping on the blinkers to let oncoming traffic know they were there and then she opened her door before jumping out and running around to Chris.

She opened his door and kneeled down, grabbing his trembling hands, "Chris…"

He was wheezing as he tried to catch his breath, his eyes were closed tightly as he roughly pulled his hands out of Callie's and covered his ears. Callie used to get upset when he'd get mean towards during one of these meltdowns, but as she grew older and got used to them, she knew he didn't mean it. He didn't really have control over what he did when he had panic attacks like this, he just wanted it to end as soon as possible and that was all that was on his mind in that moment.

"Chris, hey look at me," Callie said calmly, her voice soft and soothing, but Chris couldn't hear her, his ears were still covered.

"Chris…" Callie used all her strength to grab his wrists and pull his hands away from his ears. When he had one of these meltdowns it was like his strength was enhanced, so Callie had to practically pry his hands away from his ears.

After his hands were back in his lap, Callie squeezed them gently, "Chris, it's me, Callie," She said quietly so only he could hear her, "I'm sorry I was yelling, I'll try to keep my cool, okay? I won't yell anymore. I'm sorry…"

Chris squeezed her hands in his gently, acknowledging her presence, which caused her to smile a little bit. It took Chris a minute to catch his breath and calm down, but eventually he did and he looked up at Callie, but he didn't look her in the eye since he was a little embarrassed.

"I'm not mad at you…" He said softly, cutting his eyes over to Bailey quickly.

Callie nodded and smirked a little, "I know."

Chris smiled up at her as she pushed his thick hair back and kissed him on the forehead before she peered into the backseat, "Alright, Casper, you're driving."

Casper nodded and started to get out of the car as Carlo cast Callie a strange look, throwing his arms up, "Why can't I drive? I have a license too."

Callie nodded, "Yeah, I know."

She said it sarcastically, as if she picked Casper for a reason. Carlo glared at Callie and took a bite of his nearly finished Slim Jim. Callie helped Chris get out of the driver's seat and then they walked around the front of the car, passing Casper on the way by.

Casper gently squeezed Chris on the shoulder as he passed, "You a'right?"

Chris nodded and sniffled, his face red from embarrassment, "Yeah…"

Casper nodded and smiled before patting him on the shoulder and going around to the driver's seat. Callie and Chris went around the back Callie looked down at Bailey and saw her smug smile. She wanted to punch her.

"Is Forrest okay?" Bailey asked sarcastically, smirking up at Chris as she watched him flick his fingers anxiously.

Callie glared at Bailey, "You call him that or any name again and I promise you, I will beat your skinny little white ass."

Bailey actually seemed taken aback at Callie's remark, but she smiled to cover up her shock, "Whateva', jus' sit 'im right 'ere next ta' me, I'm sure 'e wouldn't mind sittin' next ta' me, would ye', Rain Man?"

Callie grinded her jaw before stepping back, dragging Chris with her.

"Callie, it's okay, I can handle her," Chris said, trying to ease the tension.

Callie shook her head and looked into Chris's dark eyes, "She's the reason you had a panic attack in the first place. Casper!"

"Yeah?" He called, looking over his shoulder at Callie.

"If you don't get her away from me in two seconds, I'm going to kill her," Callie snapped, her fists clenched.

Casper sighed and looked back at his cousin, "Bailey, why don't ye' come sit up front wit me?"

Bailey smiled and unbuckled her seat belt, "I'm glad ye' asked."

Then she hopped out of the backseat, purposely shoving Chris with shoulder as she passed, making him stumble a bit. Callie grabbed his arm to steady him and glared at Bailey as she passed. She waited for  
Bailey to get in the front seat and close the door before she got into the backseat along with Chris.

Chris had to sit near a window, it was just something that was required for him. One of his many quirks.

Callie had to sit beside Carlo now too, another person she didn't really like, but she'd rather sit next to him any day than sit next to Bailey. Carlo was just annoying in general, but he wasn't a dick to everyone. He was more like an annoying little brother. Bailey was just Satan.

"Are we all good?" Casper asked after he heard the back door slam.

Callie looked over at Chris and then up at Casper and nodded, "Yep."

Casper nodded, cleared his throat and then put the car in drive before he pulled back out onto the road. Callie sighed contently as she felt Chris rest his head on her shoulder tiredly, that panic attack taking a toll on him.

Callie interlocked her fingers with his and squeezed his hand gently before Casper drove the car back onto the road so the group could continue their road trip.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N – Sorry it's been so long, I've had a lot of stuff going on. I'll try to be more consistent now. Thanks for reading.

Disclaimer – I don't own That 70's Show or any of its characters.

May 23, 2004

After several more hours of driving the group had arrived in Indiana and in the middle of the night they had stopped to get a few hours of sleep.

Callie woke up with Chris still leaning against her shoulder, snoring softly. When she looked around she noticed everyone else was sleeping except for her and Casper. Casper was looking at a map currently, looking as if he had just woken up himself.

Callie shifted a little bit, but being easy so she didn't wake up Chris. There was an ache in her shoulder because of his weight on it all night, but she'd be fine.

"Good morning," Callie spoke suddenly, rubbing her eyes to get the sleep out of them.

Casper looked over his shoulder briefly at Callie and mumbled a good morning himself before looking back down at the map in his lap.

"Where are we exactly?" Callie asked, stretching.

Casper shrugged his shoulders a little, "I don't know. We just got ta Indiana last night, so we still gotta while before we get there."

Callie rolled her eyes, "No shit, Sherlock."

Casper chuckled a little before he asked, "Do ye' wanna get somethin' ta eat? There's a Denny's up the road a little ways."

Callie nodded, "Yeah, sure. I've got to use the bathroom first though."

"Okay," Casper said, starting to fold the map, "Chris said he wanted ta call Eric sometime today."

Callie nodded and looked at the clock on the dash, "Yeah, they're probably freaking out right about now."

"My Dad probably doesn't give a shit," Casper said quietly, putting the folded up map into the glove compartment.

"What about these two?" Callie asked, referring to a sleeping Carlo and Bailey.

Casper looked at his friend and his deadbeat cousin and grimaced, "Bailey won't get in trouble, she never does. And Carlo… Carlo's family's weird. Who knows with him."

Callie scoffed, "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Well," Casper said, looking back at Callie, "Should we wake 'em up?"

Callie looked down at her boyfriend and smiled a little. He was so peaceful was he was sleeping, "Yeah, probably."

"Alright," Casper said, turning towards his cousin, "Let's get 'em up then so we can get goin'."

0-0-0-0-0

"I can't believe he would just do something like this!" Eric cried, very worried and very upset right now as Jackie tried to calm her husband down as she tried getting Ben to sit still in her lap, "I've never seen him as being so irresponsible!"

"You're right," Jackie said, trying to ease his worries, "He wouldn't be so irresponsible. That's why he probably had a reason to something like this."

Eric raised his eyebrows and threw his hands up, "What could be the reason?! Why would he run away like this?! I don't understand!"

Jackie shrugged her shoulders, but stayed relatively calm, "Who knows, but knowing Chris, he wouldn't just take off like this."

"He—" Eric started to say something, but the phone suddenly started ringing.

Both Eric and Jackie looked to it and Eric quickly made his way over to it, answering it quickly and holding it up to his ear, hope filling his eyes quickly.

"Hello? Chris, is that you?" Eric asked, worry lacing his words.

"No, this is Fiona," A woman's voice said on the other end, her New York accent very thick, "Is Carlo there? It's the only otha' place I think he'd be."

Eric shook his head and slumped his shoulders, "No, Carlo's not here. Sorry."

"Okay, well… Do ye' 'ave anywhere ye' think he might be?" The woman asked, sounding impatient and worried at the same time, just like Eric.

"No, I'm sorry," Eric said to presumably Carlo's mother, "My son and your son's friend Chris is missing as well. So is his girlfriend Callie… Do you think they might be together?"

"It's possible," The woman said, "Carlo's always talkin' 'bout that boy."

"Okay, well, I'll call you if I hear anything, alright?" Eric said.

"Yeah, okay," The woman then proceeded to read off her number so Eric could write it down before they both hung up.

"That was Carlo's mother," Eric said, turning to his wife, "He's gone too."

"Do you remember when Carlo and Casper came over the other day?" Jackie asked, thinking back, "Carlo said that Chris had to talk to them about something. Something private. Do you think it has something to do with this?"

Eric shrugged, crossing his arms over his chest anxiously, "I don't know. Maybe."

Jackie noticed Eric's breathing pick up dramatically, so she stood after finally giving up with a very grumpy Ben. She set her son down in the armchair and stepped over to Eric, grabbing his arm gently and directing him to the couch.

"Alright, calm down, we'll figure something out," Jackie said, assisting Eric with sitting down, "Calm down. It's alright. Breathe."

Eric no longer suffered from depression or harming himself, but he still struggled with anxiety pretty badly and had anxiety attacks every now and again. Jackie rubbed Eric's back soothingly, trying to calm him down as she talked to him.

They sat there for a few moments together, Eric slowly calming down as time went on. Then the phone rang again.

Eric and Jackie both looked up and Eric started to stand, but Jackie gently pushed him back down onto the couch, "I'll get it. You stay put."

Jackie walked over to the ringing phone as Eric watched her nervously, hoping that Chris was on the other end this time.

"Hello?" Jackie answered finally, sounding calm, but also a little hopeful.

"Hey Jackie," Chris's voice flooded her ears.

Jackie released a relived sigh, "Chris."

Eric's eyes lit up and he stood, stepping over to Jackie and impatiently waiting for her to hand the phone to him.

"Sorry if I worried you guys," Chris said nervously, his voice a little shaky, "Is Dad there?"

Jackie looked over at Eric and then nodded, "Yes, he's standing right next me."

"Can I talk to him?" Chris asked.

"Yes, you may," Jackie then handed the phone to her husband and stepped back, listening in on their conversation a little bit.

"Chris?" Eric said once he had the phone in his hands.

"Hey Dad," Chris said, his voice more nervous than before. Eric could almost see him shaking with fear.

"Chris, where the hell are you?" Eric asked, sounding a little meaner than he wanted to.

"I'm fine, Dad, don't worry about me," Chris said, avoiding the question.

"Chris. Where are you?" Eric asked again, not in the mood for this.

"I can't say," Chris said, fumbling with the phone a little, "I'll just say I'm not in New York anymore."

"You're not in the city or you're not in the state?" Eric asked anxiously, his grip tight on the telephone.

It took Chris a moment to answer, almost confirming Eric's assumption, "We're not in the state."

Eric sighed then asked, "I'm assuming Callie's with you?"

"Yes."

"What about Carlo? Is he with you?" Eric asked another question.

"Why?" Chris asked curiously.

"Because his mother called and she wants to know where her son is," Eric snapped harshly.

"Y-yes, he's here," Chris answered, "So is Casper in case his Dad calls to ask."

Eric sighed. He felt bad for being harsh, but Chris couldn't just run away like this. Especially if he didn't tell Eric where the hell he was going.

"Where are you headed?" Eric asked finally.

"I can't tell you that," Chris replied.

"And why not?" Eric asked irritably.

"Because I don't want you coming after me," Chris said simply.

"I'm not going to come after you," Eric lied, and Chris knew it.

"You're a horrible liar, Dad," Chris said, sounding more relaxed now.

Eric sighed, "Well… Are you eating? Are you taking care of yourself?"

"We're getting ready to eat now," Chris said, fumbling with the phone again, "I've got plenty of money, don't worry. Everything's fine here."

"Okay, well…" Eric sighed again, not wanting to permit this, but there was nothing he could do, "Don't take too long, I want you back home soon. Ben misses you… We all miss you."

"I'll be home in a week," Chris replied, and Eric could hear the slight smile in his voice, "I'll call you tomorrow okay?"

Eric nodded curtly, "Yeah, alright. Be careful, okay?"

"I will," Chris said, "You can trust me."

Eric nodded again, smiling a little himself now, "I know."

A few more words were exchanged and then they hung up.

0-0-0-0-0

"I made out with Diane Thompson, y'know?" Carlo said as the group all sat around a table as they waited for Chris to finish talking to Eric.

"I know," Callie said, fiddling with her napkin, "But she passed out like half way through."

Carlo shrugged and leaned back in his seat, throwing his arm over the back of it, "I never said she was completely into it."

Callie sort of glared at Carlo and scoffed, "You're sick, Carlo."

He smiled charmingly back at her, "I know, babe."

"You're both really annoying," Bailey suddenly said, holding her hands together and rolling her eyes at the two.

Callie glared at Bailey and snapped, "And you're really a bitch."

"I will fight you, y'know?" Bailey snapped, sizing Callie up a bit.

"Try me," Callie snapped back.

"Ladies, ladies, calm down," Carlo but in, "While I'm usually one to see a cat fight, I don't really want to break up a fight in Denny's today, so please. Keep the fist throwing to a minimum."

Both girls huffed and Bailey sat back in her seat as Callie got up and walked around to sit next to Carlo, "I'm staying as far away from her as possible. Scoot over."

Carlo scoot down on the bench and let Callie sit next to him as Chris finally came back, looking a little anxious.

"Hey, what did he say?" Callie asked, looking up at her boyfriend as he stood there awkwardly, looking down at his feet and fiddling with his fingers.

"He was upset," Chris said, shrugging his shoulders loosely, "But he calmed down a little bit after talking for a minute. I'm pretty sure I'm grounded though."

Callie nodded, "Yeah, we were all expecting that."

Chris sat down across from Callie, resting his folded hands in his lap awkwardly, his gaze cast downwards.

"You're Mom's worried about you, Carlo," Chris said to his friend, who nodded in return.

"Yeah, she's a bit over protective," Carlo said, resting his arm on the back of the bench behind Callie.

Chris looked around for a moment, his brow suddenly furrowed, "Where's Casper?"

"He went to the bathroom," Bailey said carelessly, looking as if she'd rather be anywhere else than here, and Chris almost asked her why she had come along, but decided against it.

She probably came just to annoy everyone.

"I'm guessing Cas's daddy doesn't care where his precious baby is, huh?" Bailey asked, a smug smile gracing her lips.

Callie wanted to punch her in the teeth so bad.

"Dad didn't mention him," Chris said, shrugging again, "I don't know if Casper really cares, anyway."

"Oh trust me," Bailey said, smiling a little smugly, "He cares. That boy wants somebody to notice him."

"We notice him," Callie defended, sort of glaring at Bailey.

"He wants a parental figure to notice him," Bailey snapped back, glaring at Callie, "You guys don't count."

Then it was quiet for a minute. But silence never lasted long when Carlo was around.

"Y'know, we should start a club," Carlo suddenly said, looking around at everyone, "Anyone notice we all got daddy issues? I mean, Callie's Dad is dead, Chris is on a man hunt to find his, Casper doesn't know where his is, and my dad's a deadbeat."

"Your point being?" Bailey asked in an annoyed way.

"I told you we should start a club," Carlo said, giving Bailey an irritable look, "Come on, it'll be great fun. Bailey's not invited."

Callie scoffed, "I'm in."

Chris smiled a little at that and Bailey glared at everyone around her, "That's fine. I don't want to be anywhere near you guys after this anyways."

"If you hate us so much, then why the hell did you come along?" Callie asked, her hands on top of the table as she leaned across at Bailey a little bit threateningly.

"Aw, what's the matter, Callie? Did Carlo's little speech bring up bad memories of your daddy?" Bailey snapped and Callie gripped the table harder.

"My dad died, he didn't leave," Callie snapped, her glare as sharp as daggers, "I don't have any bad memories of him. Not one."

"Are you sure?" Bailey asked, "Because with this attitude, it seems like you've got some severe issues."

Callie was about to launch herself across the table at the other girl, but suddenly Carlo jumped in, surprisingly everybody, especially Callie.

"Hey, that's enough alright?" Carlo snapped at Bailey, glaring at her for the first time, "Just because your life sucks doesn't mean you have to make everyone else around you miserable. So sit down and shut up."

Bailey seemed a little surprised at first, but quickly regained her high ground, "What? You suddenly found that you have emotions?"

"Is your only purpose on this planet to be an asshole?" Carlo snapped.

Bailey hummed and nodded, sitting back in her seat again and crossing her arms, "Yep."

Everyone then got quiet and sat together in silence. They would just wait for Casper to get back and then they'd eat and get back on the road.

This was going to be a long road trip.


End file.
